In today's medical education curriculum, it is necessary for students to learn the proper technique for taking medical histories, performing physical exams, and finding the appropriate way to educate and inform patients. The best way for a student to learn these skills is through hands-on training with a Standardized Patient (SP)—an actor who has been hired to portray a specific set of health problems and symptoms.

Working with SPs has become so important in medical education that it is now a component of the USMLE clinical skills assessment exam. To ensure best practice, the coaches who prepare SPs now need general guidelines.

This handbook is intended as that guide and as a support for those who are involved in training SPs, to encourage each coach to develop a system that will deliver the best results and, in the end, help train the most competent doctors.